Scot Stephen Clegg narrowly missed out on gold in the S12 100m butterfly final, winning a silver medal and taking his third podium place at the Tokyo Paralympics.
Clegg, who set a new world record in the event five months ago, admitted he was frustrated and heartbroken after being narrowly beaten by Azerbaijan’s Raman Salei, with only 0.06 seconds separating the pair.
The visually-impaired swimmer, from Newcastleton in the Borders, adds his silver to the bronze medals he had already won in the 100m freestyle and backstroke.
“I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t disappointed,” Clegg told Channel 4. “I came here to win.
“It was far short from where I wanted to be. I can’t make any excuses.
“The preparations were good. It was an amazing race. It’s a bit of heart-breaking because I knew I was capable of being much faster. It’s whoever is best on the day.”
The 25-year-old said he would definitely return for the Games in Paris in three years, determined to win gold.
“I definitely want a gold medal in my career,” Clegg said. “There is no chance of me retiring soon.
“I’ll go away from this and come back with a vengeance.
“It’s frustrating. I have to go away and look to make myself better for Paris.
“I want to thank everyone who brought me here. I have come so far in the last five or seven years. I wouldn’t be here without all the coaches and team-mates I have had.”
Sportscotland’s director of high performance Mike Whittingham said:” Stephen left it all out there and was so close to a gold but this result completes an incredible hat-trick of medals at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.
“He will look back on these Games with immense pride having delivered three medals.”
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